Kaye watched the two with a heavy frown as he recognized who seemed like Simon's younger brother, except they seemed very different from here. Simon's brother appeared to be almost emotionless, with puffs of cigarette smoke replacing their breathe. Part of them reminded Kaye of himself a few years ago. Pushing his thoughts away, he watched the two, not daring to say anything as he glanced over towards Ashley who seemed to be watching from across the bar as well.
Simon was painfully aware of Kaye watching him from just a few steps away, but he did his best to ignore him. "Look, just give me a straight answer, and I'll leave you alone." It came out more like a growl. Erik blew a puff of smoke into his older brother's face, grinning likr a madman, though his eyes stayed completely blank. "Fine. Mother misses you…."
Simon managed to roll his eyes, turning away. "I don't give a shit."
"She's dying, Simon."
He froze. Turned around. "What?"
His mother? Kaye frowned heavily from where he was standing as he glanced between Simon and the younger boy. What did he mean…dying? Of course, Kaye didn't ask, and instead, he let his thoughts race through his mind.
The smug look on Erik's face dimmed slightly. "She's dying. Overdosing on– well, you know. She's stopped talking in coherent sentences, her eyes are far off.. but she keeps saying your name in her sleep. Over and over again. She misses you."
Simon just stood there, rooted to the spot. Each of Erik's words hit home like a bullet, painful and inescapable. Guilt rose within him, but anger quickly forced it back down again. "Like I said, Erik, I don't give a shit."
Erik's eyes widened ever so slightly, the first emotion he'd displayed so far. "She's our mother."
"Well, she broke me. She never cared about me, so why start now? I'm not going back until she apologizes for every single thing she's done."
Part of Kaye felt guilty that he was listening to this conversation, as if he didn't have a right to hear this information about Simon's life. Though, he felt oddly sympathetic for the other man…losing a family member or watching them die was terrible. Even with these feelings, Kaye continued to listen, something in him a bit wary about Simon's emotionless brother.
Erik sneered. "So you really don't care about her… I thought you'd be better than this."
Simon was an inch away from shoving his little brother to the ground. "Yeah, well, I'm not. Goodbye, hope to see you never." He turned away, but a hand on his shoulder stopped him. A hand as cold as ice. Erik forced him to turn around, and drove his fist into his older brother's face.
Kaye's eyes widened when Erik punched his older brother, and many people around the bar began to stand up, most yelling to fight and only a couple trying to ease everyone. He took a small step backwards, unsure of what to do. He had only been in fights that concerned himself…so when someone else was fighting, he wasn't sure if he was supposed to help, or let the other punch instead. Plus, Kaye was easily smaller than both men by a few inches, so he wasn't sure that his presence would help either.
Simon didn't miss a beat. With blood dripping from his nose, he wrapped two wide hands around his brother's throat and forced him to the ground, a snarl evident on his features. His pointed canines slid from his gums, flashing in the weak light of the bar. "Go home, Erik~" he Sang. Eriks features contorted as he tried to fight off the hypnotic power oozing from his brother's voice.
Was Simon singing? A look of disbelief crossed his features as Kaye watched Erik almost fight some sort of force off, his determination slowly weakening with the passing notes. He continued to watch and was so focused on what was happening that most of the noises in the bar were drowning out, from the shouts and clatters of bottles. This meant– this meant that Simon was possibly something supernatural, and would eventually figure out that Kaye was too. What would happen then?
Erik went slack beneath Simon's vice-like grip. Simon loosened his hold, moving to pull away, which turned out to be his first mistake. Canines gleaming, Erik surged up, sinking his sharp teeth into an exposed part of Simon's shoulder. His older brother cried out in pain, shoving the smaller man away, but it was too late. Erik had the upper hand now.
Kaye grimaced when he saw Erik bite into Simon's shoulder, and he felt sudden, impulsive anger course through him at the sight. He couldn't just sit here and do nothing as the two fought with each other. "Stop!" He shouted, the words leaving his mouth before he realized it was a stupid thing to do. Yet, he had done a lot of stupid things tonight anyway.
Erik turned his cold eyes, alight with a freezing fire, to Kaye, and Simon continued to struggle against his hold. "Leave him out of this!~" he yelled, weaving lines of Song into the words. Erik, blessedly, listened, and soon the older brother had the upper hand again, driving his fist into the younger man's face.
Kaye's eyes widened almost unnoticeably when Erik looked towards him. The way that his eyes appeared, the odd piercing blue tone that looked just like Simon's, yet his were empty and off. Had Simon been like his brother before? He held onto these thoughts for a few moments before he realized that Simon was driving his fist back into his younger brother's face one again.
Simon shoved Erik away against the wall, stepping back and wiping the blood from underneath his nose where it had pooled on the cusp of his lip. "Leave me alone," he growled, clenching his trembling hands into fists. There was no Song this time, only burning rage.
A few people had gone back to their conversations and drinks, labeling the fight as only a small familial problem, though a couple people continued to watch, including Kaye. He had never really seen this side to Simon, even if they had only known each other for one or two days, though he had to admit that it worried him. Sure, Kaye could get that violent too, but it didn't seem to fit with Simon's almost peaceful personality. Though, the main thing that troubled Kaye was that Simon had stopped Erik from attacking him…as if he were worried for the other boy.
Erik gasped out a breath, chest heaving. "Fine," he spat, pushing off the wall and staggering past his older brother. "I guess you really are heartless." And he was gone.
Simon sagged against the wall, clearly spent. He didn't spare anyone else a glance, not even Kaye, just dabbed at his throbbing nose and held back tears.
Kaye's brows drew together as he looked towards Simon, noticing the blood dripping down their nose and the emotions the other seemed to keep in. The way the other man didn't look at anyone discouraged Kaye from stepping towards them, though he went against his instincts and began to walk towards Simon. They were injured, and he wouldn't just let them stay there with a busted nose.
"Hey, let's– let's get that fixed up, yeah? Ashley's got some medical supplies in the back," Kaye started as he fiddled with the drawstrings on his hoodie a bit nervously, not mentioning what the fight was about. The last thing he wanted was to agitate Simon.
Simon shook his head, straightening his back despite the bout of dizziness that rushed through his head. "I'll be fine–" he managed, though he knew his protests were both weak, and would fall on deaf ears. I don't deserve your help. "It was just– just a small scuffle." One of his scarred palms reached for the deep punctures in his shoulder, spilling blood down the front of his shirt. He told himself that he didn't care that his brother had ventured this inland to find him. He told himelf that he didn't care his mother was dying.
He was lying.
"A small scuffle? Simon, you're bleeding," Kaye frowned as he looked up towards the other man with a softer gaze. Part of him also wanted to repay Simon for the fact that they had also helped when he had gotten into a fight. "C'mon, it'll only take a few minutes," he added with a small sigh as he motioned towards the back of the bar, hoping that the other man would just come with him. If not, Kaye would probably stay until he convinced them.
Simon sighed and relented, too exhausted to argue. He nodded, letting Kaye lead him to the back while guilt crushed him, very slowly, very painfully. Images of his mother, his cold, hard mother, lying helpless in bed, tore through his mind, bringing tears to his eyes. And oh, how he hated the tears. Why should he care for her like this?
Kaye led Simon towards the back of the bar, easily getting through a group of people near the door. The lights were even dimmer back here, which probably wouldn't help if he was cleaning up the puncture and bleeding from Simon's nose. Maybe there was some sort of candle back here.
"Why don't you sit…up here," Kaye said as he patted a small counter in the backroom before he began to walk off, searching for a cabinet.
Simon obliged with a bowed head, staring down at his bloodstained hands. Slowly, summoning twinges of pain, his predatory canines slid back into his gums, the last spark of his anger dwindling.
Why was Kaye helping him? He’d heard his song, seen the teeth, it probably hadn’t been very hard for him to piece things together, but after watching him attack his little brother— he was still trying to care for him? It didn’t make any sense, at least not to Simon.
After a few minutes of searching, Kaye managed to find a small, metal tin of medical supplies, such as a few wipes, gauze, and bandaids for wound closures. With a satisfied nod of his head, he made his way back towards Simon, scouring through the first aid tin before setting it back down on the counter.
"Let's take care of your nose first, okay?" Kaye said, though it was more a question– a way to check with Simon before he helped the other man.
Simon nodded wordlessly, still trying— and failing— to rein in his wild emotions. It wasn’t supposed to be this way. He was supposed to be collected. Calm. A new person. Free. He was supposed to be okay.
Kaye bit the inside of his cheek sharply as he thought, wondering how he could help Simon without making the other man uncomfortable…though he was mostly afraid of getting flustered himself. Just wipe the blood off. Easy peasy. After a few moments of decision and rustling through the first aid kit, he grabbed a small pad doused with some sort of antiseptic. He placed his hand on Simon's cheek tentatively in order to steady himself, though he never actually looked up towards the other man, not wanting to gauge their reaction. Now that the hard part was over, he began to wipe off the blood carefully, making sure that he wouldn't brush against Simon's bruised nose.